Summer 2023: Staff Updates

In the first half of 2023, CBI said goodbye to three long-serving staff. On the administrative side, our beloved and veteran office manager Sossi Aroyan stepped down from that role, and Ed Minor, our Chief Operating Officer, retired—both were in their roles for over twenty years, and we say goodbye with much gratitude. Ed and Sossi brought so much to CBI’s organizational culture, and served CBI with remarkable loyalty, focus, and commitment. Thank you to both of them!

On the practice side, inaugural CBI West Director Gina Bartlett has stepped down and shifted to a Senior Consultant as she transitions out of neutral dispute resolution to pursue leadership opportunities in advocacy work. Gina developed CBI’s presence in California and built a fabulous team there, and we wish her all the best of luck in her new endeavors!

We’ve also welcomed new staff, and other staff have taken on new roles at CBI. 

We are thrilled to welcome Sarah Hershberger as our new Chief Financial and Operating Officer. She draws from years of experience as a non-profit finance professional. That experience includes roles as Director of Finance & Operations at ORCID and Director of Finance & Administration for the Homeless Services Center in Santa Cruz, CA. Read about Sarah here.

Tania Carlone has stepped up as the new Director of CBI West, building on her current work as a Senior Mediator, and bringing her decades of experience to the new role. Read about Tania’s work here.

Cameron Hager has become an Operations Manager, after working with CBI as a Junior Associate. Cameron’s promotion is due to his incredible talent in managing multiple projects, complex logistics, and many moving parts with such grace and aplomb. He supports various projects throughout CBI with technical assistance, event management, project design, and facilitation. Read about his work here.

Jaclyn Riley has joined CBI this spring to become an Operations Manager. She has years of non-profit experience, especially in development operations at Jumpstart for Young Children, where she created and oversaw a team focused on fundraising operations. Read about Jaclyn here.

Brandon Chambers has been promoted from Junior Associate to Associate. Brandon brings a high level of competence to work across projects, robustly anticipating project needs and stepping up to lead facilitation roles in many cases. He’ll continue to work across the range of CBI’s practice areas, including natural resource management, renewable energy policy, climate adaptation, sustainable development, and community engagement. Read more about Brandon here.

Melanie Gárate joined CBI this spring as a Senior Associate. She brings years of experience in the areas of climate resilience, community work, and equity. Her work focuses on increasing the resilience of people affected by climate change. Read more about Melanie here.

Rachel Freed joined CBI in the role of Senior Consultant, drawing from 25 years of experience as a mediator, facilitator, and trainer and as a senior staff person at the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. She specializes in multi-party processes involving environmental permitting, public policy, workplace conflict, and organizational/structural issues. Read more about Rachel here.